Add a chorus of mmms to the oohs and ahs on fireworks night with delicious snacks for the whole family. These quick bites are easy to make and even easier to eat — no cutlery required! Pack right and you’ll create zero waste and keep everything at just the right temperature until snacking time.
Dazzling Snacks
Kids and adults alike will love tucking into these tasty treats as they watch the light show.
Coconut Popcorn: Toss freshly popped popcorn with a mixture of melted coconut oil, large desiccated coconut flakes and a touch of sea salt for a tropical-inspired sweet and salty snack.
Chocolate-Dipped Pretzels: To make your own version of this salty-sweet treat, buy plain salted pretzels and dip them in melted white or dark chocolate. Before the chocolate sets, dip the pretzels in sprinkles or chopped pistachios for extra crunch.
Sweet & Spicy Nuts: For a snack with extra oomph, toss mixed nuts with egg whites, sugar, salt, and cayenne and chili powders, and then bake.
Granola & Chocolate Trail Mix: Combine raisins, M&Ms, broken-up granola bars, banana chips and mini marshmallows for a mix with kid appeal.
Aged Cheddar and Apple Dip: Celery stalks are extra delicious with a creamy and crunchy dip of cheddar, cream cheese, sour cream and Worcestershire with diced apple.
Grilled Portobello Sandwich with Cheese & Green Onion Mayo: For a more substantial snack, pack this vegetarian sandwich of portobello mushrooms and your favourite flavourful cheese.
No-Bake Brownies with Pecans & Coconut: For a rich, chocolatey snack, make a batch of these nutty treats and cut them into bite-size pieces.
Cutlery-Free Dining
Hand-held foods are the way to go for eating outdoors after dark. In addition to the heavenly snacks listed above, grab-and-go options like these are easy.
- Fruits such as apples, bananas, oranges and pears are among the simplest options. Serve smaller fruits (such as berries) or chopped fruit (like melon and pineapple) on skewers.
- Nobody will complain if you add a marshmallow or two or pre-dip berries and fruit chunks in chocolate.
- Vegetables cut into crudités are always a favourite. For a no-prep option, purchase ready-to-go vegetables like baby carrots or precut broccoli. Ready-made salsa, guacamole, tzatziki and hummus dips will appeal to all tastes.
- For filling, high-protein snacks*, think peeled hard-boiled eggs, jerky, or chunks of cheddar cheese and mini pickled onions on cocktail sticks.
Waste Not
The last thing you want is to be picking up garbage after the show. Be kind to the environment by minimizing waste and packaging.
- Pack snacks in glass containers, such as Mason jars or cleaned-out jam jars, which you can wash and reuse time and time again.
- Bring along cloth napkins and toss them in the washing machine.
- Invest in lunch box containers that have separate compartments — just like the meal trays on planes — and divvy up treats in advance, so everybody has their own personal snack pack.
- For handwashing before everyone eats and for face wiping later, bring warm, wet washcloths in a wide-necked Thermos flask.
- Packing sandwiches? Invest in reusable sandwich bags to keep them fresh and protected.
Temperature Control
Whether you’re transporting cold drinks and snacks or warm, precooked nibbles, follow these packing tips to keep your food at just the right temperature until you’re ready to eat.
Cold perishable food should be kept in the cooler at 4°C/40°F or below until serving time. Hot food should be kept hot, at or above 60°C/140°F, be wrapped well and placed in an insulated container until serving.
- Hot or cold foods should not sit out for more than two hours, or one hour in temperatures above 32°C/90°F. If food is left out longer, throw it away to be safe.
- Transport soft drinks or smoothies in washable water bottles — pop in a few ice cubes to keep them cool on hot summer nights.
- Freeze individual juice boxes overnight and tuck them next to cold snacks; they’ll work like ice packs to keep everything chilled. Within a few hours, they will be thawed enough to drink.
- Wide-mouthed Thermos flasks do the trick for keeping garlic bread, cooked wieners and warm cheese dips at just the right temperature.
- If you’re using a cooler, keep it in the shade (under a tree, parasol or picnic table) and far from any bonfires, so it can do its job longer.
*As per the Canadian Nutrient File.
